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ArrayForth on Windows7 64bit ?

Despite I read that Greenarrays does not recommend to use ArrayForth with Windows 64bit because of too much trouble, I tested it and it works good. The simulation "so" and the contact to my breadboard with "host load panel talk 0 500 hook upd 3 lit 4 lit r+" works fine.

I am using Windows7 Professional 64bit.
I load the Virtual-Com-Port Software from FTDI FTDI VCP Driver
I used this version: 2014-09-29 downloaded file: "CDM v2.12.00 WHQL Certified"
I started the installation as Admin, click with right mouse button on file, start as admin
I saw that the COM3 was installed
The only change in the driver setting, I switched from 9600 to 115200 baud
The rest according to my blog-post "GA144 Serial Interface Setting in ColorForth" from "2014-Jun-28 21:50" - I changed the a-com back to "3".

2014-Oct-27 17:00 – GA, Breadboard, ColorForth

GA144 Practical Example .. working !!

I found a practical example in the ArrayForth User's Manual
You'll find it in Chapter 9. Practical Example - a pwm control of the output.
The root cause why the first try, see below, didn't work was that I didn't switch to hex before I entered the numbers.

Here the video:
GreenArrays GA144 Practical Example 9 DB004

The changes I made to the 842 section :


With commands like "1000 seed" or " 4000 seed" I can change the brightness of the green LED. My notes:

Schematic:
3 kOhm resistor from GA144 to GND
to gate of BS138 mosfet transistor, source on GND
green led, 330 Ohm resistor in drain
led on 3.3V from usb adapter

Function test commands:
hostload panel talk 0 600 hook upd
on: 30000 io r!
off: 0 io r!

Edit block 842:
replace 20000 with 30000, use hex F1 !
replace 10000 with 0
exit editor, compile, save
check with '842 list'

Test:
connect usb, 1.8V power on , reset, start colorforth/okad
844 load, run
change frequency with eg. 'F1' (hex) and '2000 seed'

Thoughts:
Slow falling edge on gate, reduce 3k pulldown resistor?
Example shows constant pulse width and variation in frequency.

Next pulse-width-variation as first own program?

2014-Aug-25 16:00 – GA, Breadboard, ColorForth, Videos

GA144 Practical Example .. not working, yet.

I found another practical example in the ArrayForth User's Manual
You'll find it in Chapter 9. Practical Example - a pwm control of the output.
I mounted another LED on Node 600, I can switch it on and off like the 500, but the rest does not work.

Currently struggling with the whole system.This strange mixture of OKAD, ColorForth, ArrayForth and F18 compiler is difficult to understand .. a step by step instructions would help .. I'll find it out !!

2014-Jul-20 20:00 – GA, Breadboard, ColorForth

GA144 More Interactive Testing

Currently I'm going through the ArrayForth User's Manual
There I found the chapter "interactiv testing with Softsim", where I realized that this commands can be used for interactive testing with my breadboard, too:

With this vocabulary I can work in the panel-view directly on my node "500" - cool !

The complete ArrayForth System is available as an html-file: ArrayForth System Dump

2014-Jul-07 07:00 – GA, Breadboard, ColorForth

GA144 First Contact Video

GreenArrays Hello World on ForthSeen.com
Here as a link, embedded makes the Blog too slow .. See you :)

2014-Jun-29 20:50 – GA, Breadboard, ColorForth, Videos

GA144 First Contact with the Chip

The following examples are made according this very helpful blogpost:
Hands-on-with-a-144-core-processor
Here my first tests with my own GA144 breadboard, bold input, screen dump as result:
4 selftest ( Question: How can I recognize a successful selftest?)

host load panel talk 0 500 hook upd ( Question: Exact function of this commands ?)
3 lit 4 lit r+ Addition test, as you see in the third line the result is "7" ( Question: How does this work exactly ? )

host load panel talk 0 500 hook upd ( if I make a reset the register values are changed)


And finally the switch on of the output on Pin 7
Press function key F1 to switch to hex then 30000 io r!

And here the proof - the output goes high !

As you probably see I have a lot of questions and things to learn - but I want to learn everything and want to share it here !
We'll see us :)

2014-Jun-29 19:50 – GA, Breadboard, ColorForth

GA144 Serial Interface Setting in ColorForth

Oh boy, the first steps in ColorForth were not easy ! First I struggled with the special keyboard in ColorForth, until I realized that there is additional confusion, because of my German keyboard - I have to change this, soon (to-do-list).The next challenge was the special Editor in ColorForth. The third task was to find out how to save the changes. I assume there is a better and faster way, but this is the way I managed it:
In the same way I changed the baudrate "a-bps" to 115200. I assume that the system-changes are saved in the file "OkadWork.cf", because this is what's updated. If you know it better and if you have already a setting for an German keyboard, I would be glad if you could send an email to me dmemos(at)t-online.de
Next is the connection and test of the GA144 on my Schmartboard .. to be continued ..

2014-Jun-28 21:50 – GA, Breadboard, ColorForth

GA144 Serial Interface

I've got this USB to serial converter with a FTDI 232R chip for little money from Ebay. First I had the jumper near the output connector set to 3.3V and I used Mosfets as level-shifter to the 1.8V GA144 system.
Then I realized that you don't need this. If you remove the jumper complete you can connect 1.8V directly to Vcc of the adapter that't the fourth pin from the bottom, at the sixth pin you have gnd, then you need an additional capacitor, as you see I used an 1uF from my scrap box.
The GA144 needs inverted signals and with the Mprog3.5 utility you can configure this in the FTDI-Eeprom:
MProg 3.5 - EEPROM Programming Utility
From the FTDI-Website you can also get the drivers, if you don't have them already. On my Windows-XP system the FTDI connects always to COM4 and I set the baudrate to 115'200 via the device-manager.
I glued first a piece of cardboard to the baseboard and on it the USB-adpater with hot glue.
Then the first adjustments in ColorForth or ArrayForth has to be made .. to be continued ..

2014-Jun-28 20:50 – GA, Breadboard, ColorForth

GA144 breadboard1 Introduction

This is the "hello-world" message of my first GA144f18a-breadboard on Sunday 22.June.2014.
I switched on the pin7, on processor No.500 over a bridge of 10 processors starting from processor No.707 near the serial input. Not much, but as important as the first breath of a new baby.

I am a bit overwhelmed of this unexpected fast success, with so little effort. In the next blog posts I will explain what I did so far - and a good occasion to start this blog.
Now the real adventure can start .. real adventures start in your head and on your breadboards !

2014-Jun-25 23:30 – Blog, GA, Breadboard

GA144 Breadboard

I used an old board, which I got once as a giveaway, as a base plate.
As powersupply I bought the black battery box with a switch, I put two rechargeable AA batteries with 1.25V nickel metal hydride type in it. From plus I go to a fuse with about 2.5Amps and a 3Amp-Diode. Under full load of 3Amps I got the nominal 1.8V for the GA144f18a. At no load the voltage is about 2V witch is in the allowed tolerance. One switch is for reset. A red LED shows that the power is on.
For the USB I used a low-cost usb-to-serial converter based on a FTDI 232R chip - in the next blog post more about this.
I used hot glue to fix everything on the base plate.

2014-Jun-25 21:50 – GA, Breadboard

GA144 Schmartboard Power connection

After all 88 pins were soldered I soldered the big middle pad through the hole on the bottom side of the Schmartboard.
This is the common ground. Then I connected a thicker copper wire from the middle to every edge, where I attached some bigger pin for the connection to the base board .

For the 1,8V power I made a rectangle-shaped ring of wire on the top, to which I connected every power pin (red marked).
I took 4 capacitors, two 1uF , one 47nF and one 22nF to stabelize the power. On the base plate I have more capacitors.

2014-Jun-24 22:35 – GA, Breadboard

GA144 Schmartboard Soldering



It took about one hour to solder the GA144-QFN88 Chip with 0,4mm pitch into the Schmartboard. First I resoldered the 88 pads on the chip bottom - but not the big middle pad ! I used flux and non-lead-free tin.
Then I needed a lot of time to adjust the pins to the board, I soldered first one pin on the edge, so that I could readjust everything a bit.
I didn't use the recommended method, but a not to small solder tip with about 1.27mm (1/20"), with a lot of fresh solder on the tip I soldered all 22 pins on each side in one turn, in a few seconds from one edge to the other.
As a control I made a macro-photo with my digital camera and magnified it.

2014-Jun-24 22:30 – GA, Breadboard

GA144 Schmartboard

I never dreamed to get a GA144f18a processor in my own hands - but then I read that Schmartboard offers a prototyping pcb including a GA144 for about 34$ - The superchip for everyone - WOW! Thank you to the kind people of SCHMARTBOARD:
Schmartboard GA144

2014-Jun-24 22:00 – GA, Breadboard

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